Fire-escape.



J. C. BROWN.

FIRE ESCAPE. APPLIoATIoN FILED AUG. z, 1913.

Patented May 26, 1914.

COLUMBIA PLANQGRAPH co.,wAsmNu'rON, Dic.

JOI-IN C. BROWN, OF ST. FAUL, MINNESOTA.

FIRE-ESCAPE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Vretained tray ee, rela.

Application filed August 2, 1913. Serial No. 782,652.

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that IJOHN C. BROWN, citizen of the United States, resident of St. Paul, county of Ramsey, State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fire-Escapes, ofy which the following is a specification. Y

The object of my invention is to provide a portable tire escape by means of which a person can easily and quickly descend from a. burning building.

A further object is to provide a fire escape having means for regulating the speed of descent or checking the descent entirely whenever desired.

Other objects of the invention will appear from t-he following detailed description.

The invention consists generally in various constructions and combinations, all as hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a side view of a fire escape embodying my invent-ion, Fig. 2 is a sectional view illustrating the controlling and brake mechanism, Fig. 3 is a sectional view, taken on a line substantially at right angles to the section line of Fig. 2, Fig. l is a sectional view on the line of Fig. 2.

In the drawing, 2 represents a casing having a cover plate 3 which may be removed to allow access to the mechanism of t-he fire escape.

t is a drum mounted on a shaft 5 that is journaled in the walls of the casing and provided wit-h a pinion 6. A cable 7 passes through holes 8 and 10 in the casing and between guides 9 and is wrapped or looped aroimd the drum 4 and hangs loosely below the casing. A frame 11 is loosely mounted on a rod 12 and has guide wheels 13 between which the cable passes, the position of the wheels in said frame causing a bend to be made in the cable and increasing its frictional contact with the guide wheels. This frame is free to slide back and forth on the rod 12 to accommodate itself to the winding or unwinding of the cable on the drum 4f. The frame 11, being loosely mounted on the rod 12, is also free to oscillate thereon and as its bearing on the rod is eccentrically arranged, the tilting of the frame will tend to throw it to a greater degree out of the direct line between the drum and the cable hole in the casing and increase the friction on the cable and toa greater degree bend or kink the cable as it passes between the pulleys. An idle gear 14 is mounted to mesh with the pinion 6 and with a gear 15 on a brake drum 16 that is also journaled in the walls of the casing and is provided with a brake strap 1.7 pivoted at one end to a rod 1S and connccted at its opposite end to a lever 19. 'lhis lever is pivoted at 2O in the casing and is provided with a threaded arm 21 upon which a compression spring 22 is mounted. A screw 23 is tapped into a lug 24 on the wall of the casing and is made to receive the end of the arm 21. A hole 25 is provided in the casing, through which a screw driver may be thrust to engage the screw 23. By adjusting this screw back and forth, the

brake strap may be tightened or loosened on the brake drum and the mechanism of the fire escape set for any desired weight of the person descending.

At one side of the gear 14 is a gear 26 meshing' with the gear 141 and provided with a friction surface plate 27. This gear is loosely mounted o-n a pin 28 tapped into the wall of the casing and provided with a friction disk 29 that is adapted to engage the plate 27 and lock the gear 26 when the pin is tightened in its socket in the casing. A lever 30 is mounted on one end of the pin 28 and a spring pressed pin 31 is mounted in said lever and adapted to slide over a toothed segment 32 on the cover 3.

By tightening or loosening the pin 2S the person descending the fire escape can easily and quickly regulate the speed of descent or stop entirely. At the lower end of the casing is a yoke 32 to which a sling 33 is attached, the sling being preferably of suchr construction that the person using the tire escape will be comfortably seated in the sling and cannot become 'dislodged therefrom through any shock of stopping or by being overcome by the heat or smoke. The cable 7 is.y of course, of sufficient length to reach to the ground and at. its upper end is preferably provided with a snap hook 3A which may be passed around some article of furniture or fixture in the room to form a loop.

The device is compact and simple in construction and may be carried in a traveling bag, ready at all times for immediate use.

I claim as my invention:

l. A tire escape comprising a casing, a

drum mounted therein and having'a gear thereon, a cable looped around said drum and having its ends passing through the Wall ci said casing, a pin tapped into the wall of said casing, a. gear loosely mounted on said pin and meshing' with the gear 0n said drum and provided with a iriction surtace7 a friction disk secured on said pin and adapted to engage the friction surface of said gear and lock it When said pin is revolved in one direction and thereby lock said drum against revolution, said pin having an operating handle, and a rack mounted on said casing and over which said handle is movable, and a sling carried by said casing.

2. A irc escape compi ising a casing` haw'- ing an upper and a lower opening in its wallst drum mounted in said casing, a cable iooped around Said drum and having one end passing through said upper opening7 a rod mounted in said :using parallel with the axis ci said drum7 a -frame loosely and eccentric-ally mounted on said rod and free to slide and oscillate thereon between said drum and said lower opening, friction pulleys mounted in said iframe and between which said cable passes from said lower opening to said drum7 said frame sliding :able increasing the friction of said pulleys thereon and tightening the loops on said drum.

2. A lire escape comprising a casing, a drum mounted in the upper part of said casing, a cable looped on said drum and liaring its ends passing through holes in the wall of said casing, one end oit said cable having means for attachment to a. support, a bra (e drum, a brake strap therefor, means Within said casing and connected With one end ot' said brake strap for tightening or loosening it on said brake druma said drums haring gears thereon, an idle gear interposed between said drums and meshing with said drum gears, a gear provided at one 'le of said idle gear and meshing therewitln a clutch device in connection with :1i-id last named gear, an operating handle iter said clutch device on the outside et' said fusing, a sling carried by said casing adjacentto said operating handlenl whereby the operator, having adjusted said brake strap l'or a predetermined. Weight and speed oi" descente.v can decrease said speed or check the downward movement ci said casing with said clutch device.

in witness whereof, l have hereunto set my hand this th day of July, 1913.

JHN C. BR

f lil/TN.

lilitnesses EDWARD A. PAUL,

GENEVIEVE E. Sonnnsnn.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C. 

